Beef price at auction

BobbyB · #41 12/12/12, 08:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fantasymaker

Dont confuse live weight with hanging weight. Around here it would be worth about a buck a pound live across the scale.

Nothing is bringing a buck a pound in Texas right now other than killer cows and bulls. yearling steers, bulls and heifers are bringing buck 35 up to nearly 3 bucks a pound depending on size and the individual auction.

Black and black baldy cattle do bring a premium. AT every sale. I agree there is no difference in an Angus and a Hereford, but like my Dad said, The Angus people did a dam fine job of marketing.

pancho · #42 12/13/12, 09:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobbyB

Nothing is bringing a buck a pound in Texas right now other than killer cows and bulls. yearling steers, bulls and heifers are bringing buck 35 up to nearly 3 bucks a pound depending on size and the individual auction.

Black and black baldy cattle do bring a premium. AT every sale. I agree there is no difference in an Angus and a Hereford, but like my Dad said, The Angus people did a dam fine job of marketing.

Just to add.
People who do not really know will usually believe anything.
I have yet to meet a person who can pick out an angus steak from steaks from other breeds.

fatrat · #43 12/13/12, 09:34 AM

I don't know cattle or cattle genetics but I was under the impression that for angus black is recessive and red dominant. Is that correct? If so then wouldn't for angus red be just as good if not better since there aught to be more of them. I have a friend who raises cattle and says black cattle with a white face always brings the most money for him. That just seems insane. I've heard some people say that jersey beef is the best they ever have had. Jersey of all breeds can you imagine that? They buy them cheap, feed them and then put them in their own freezer and sell the yucky black cows to the suckers at the sale barn! Jersey beef the better quality beef in their opinion. Jersey....who would of ever guessed? I do see retailers often advertising angus but seldom advertising quality. It seems they sell the breed more than the beef. Though I don't have cattle my guess is the quality of the beef has more to do with how it is fed than anything else. You all would know better than me though. I think if I was raising cattle for myself I'd just get whatever was cheapest and then feed it as well as I could. My guess is it would taste real good.

ErinP · #44 12/13/12, 10:03 AM

I've never met anyone who could tell the difference either, and I've been in this business my entire life.
That said, black does sell better. Black Angus, black Limousine, black Simmental, black Gelbviehs...
At the commercial level, breed doesn't matter. So long as your calves are fairly uniform, you'll get "black Angus" prices. BobbyB's dad is right. Those Angus folks did a fine job marketing and my thanks to 'em.

BobbyB · #45 12/13/12, 03:12 PM

I haul corn to a custom feed lot several times a week. They have every color known there. But here and there I can see a lot full of black and black baldies. And a surprising number of Holstein crosses here and there too.

wildcat6 · #46 12/14/12, 08:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pancho

The cattle buyers I know don't care what color they buy as the customer does not see the hide and can't tall the difference in tast of the angus or hereford.
They will buy as cheap as they are able to and if people believe a cow by any other color except black will bring less that is esactly what they will pay.
The thing that will cause the cattle buyers to loose their job is when they show up with the 30 nice angus steers and the 10 black holstein sters. The angus will feed out nice. The holsteins not so much. More waste on the holsteins also. When the 40 steers are butchered and the 10 holsteins lower the profit the buyer will be blamed.
Not many buyers keep a job if they just buy for color. No matter what people think color doesn't have a taste.

Look at the next feedlot you happen to go by. Look at the different colors in there. Now look at the number of dairy steers in there.

Around here balck steers will always bring more. All cattle buyers know the difference between a Holstein and a beef steer. Holsteins don't bring anything in comparison to beef.

wildcat6 · #47 12/14/12, 09:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by haypoint

What you describe is the way it had always been and IMHO the way it should still be. While my example of black Holsteins is a bit extreme, the demand for “certified Angus” borders on crazy. They don’t do DNA testing to insure a steer is Angus, so if it is black and somewhat beefy, it is Angus.
A lot depends on where the cattle are going when they leave the feedlot. Slaughter facilities will pay a premium for black cattle. Anyone that has been around the beef business knows that there is a variety of quality in all beef breeds. Therefore, there are some Angus that will be of poorer quality than some Herefords. But the premium is on the Angus because the consumer believes it to be the best. This has resulted in a scramble for Black cattle.
Green Bay Dressed Beef butchers cattle for processing. Things like canned stew or spaghetti sauces. They don’t care what color the cattle are, as long as they can walk from the truck to the killing floor.
The alert farmer has seen what the public thinks is good and has gotten on board. A Montana farmer has seen the way the public has gotten interested in Angus beef and gone a step farther. They market Red Angus as a superior product. Then to go even further, they promote them as being humanely raised. Now that is what the public wants and they are making a good living off that premium paid. Check out:
http://meyernaturalangus.com/

That is very true. We sell all our blacks becuase they bring more and keep the others for ourselves and family. We can't tell the difference so it doesn't matter to us.